LeSean McCoy was far from pleased when he heard the news that the Buffalo Bills had acquired him from the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for linebacker Kiko Alonso. The star running back said that he was unaware who Alonso even was and originally said that he wouldn’t report the Buffalo.

After signing a five-year $40 million contract extension, McCoy spent the offseason bashing his former Eagles’ coach Chip Kelly before struggling in his first year with the Bills, rushing for just 895 yards and three scores.

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In 2016, McCoy began to embrace his new situation and surroundings, being more vocal with the media and making himself more readily available.

Head coach Sean McDermott was a part of Philadelphia’s coaching staff when McCoy was drafted by the Eagles in 2009 and he’s witnessed the five-time Pro Bowler grow up from a young rookie to a seasoned veteran.

On Friday, McDermott spoke to the media about McCoy’s personal growth as a teammate.

“I would say this: the thing I’ve been most impressed with about LeSean is his growth as a teammate,” McDermott said. “You watch, and I would say probably more so for me than anyone because of our relationship and because of how it got started years ago in Philadelphia and now coming full circle years later. Just to watch him evolve, mature and it’s not that he wasn’t a teammate, it’s just that’s what happens when you grow and you’ve been in the league for so many years. You start to understand what this is all about.”

McCoy is now seemingly all-in with McDermott’s team-first philosophy and has trust in ‘the process’ that the first-year head coach has been drilling into the Bills.

“I’m impressed by LeSean’s growth as a teammate. I love how he’s embraced this locker room in an unselfish way and puts the team first.” pic.twitter.com/KnBbQUR3ND

Despite rushing for just 216 yards and zero touchdowns on 68 carries (3.3 yards-per-attempt) through four games, McDermott has faith that McCoy’s competitive nature will eventually allow him to achieve his goal of reaching 10,000 career rushing yards in 2017 and eventually hit the 12,000-yard mark that he set for himself during the offseason.

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“When he’s challenged, he rises to the occasion. That’s the individual part of it. The competitor. I’ll take that every day of the week. I just love the fact and the way that he’s embraced this football team in a very unselfish approach of putting the team first and winning. That’s been a joy as a coach to watch him evolve over the years.”

McCoy has combined to rush for just 106 yards during his last three games but will look to get back to his play-making ways Sunday when Buffalo faces the Cincinnati Bengals.

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